What is a family history of heart disease?
You have a family history of early heart disease if a first-degree relative (parent, brother or sister, or child) was diagnosed with heart disease or died suddenly from heart problems before age 65 in female relatives, or before age 55 in male relatives.
How does family history put me at risk?
Heart disease is a complex disease that is partly caused by genes inherited from your parents. These genetic factors and their interaction with lifestyle factors (such as diet and exercise) determine your likelihood of developing heart disease and heart disease risk factors.
Heart disease tends to cluster in families because genes that predispose someone to develop major heart disease risk factors...
|
